Indian Food Made Easy

I picked this book up at B & N for cheap and boy am I glad I did. It has great pictures, easy recipes and the author is great. She writes as if you were a friend who asked for a recipe so there are hints and suggestions for changes and variations. If you like Indian food I suggest this one.

Like it says on the cover, this makes Indian food easy. It's easy to follow simple recipes produce tasty dishes. I was so impressed I bought another copy for my daughter-in-law.

I live in Mumbai now and have been watching Anjum's program on Discovery Travel and Living. Watching her make the recipes looked so easy, and since I am already in India, I figured finding the ingredients would be no sweat (it wasn't). Anjum also lightens up the recipes (i.e. Potato and Pea Samosas made in Filo pastry dough and then baked) and the desserts at the end look divine--especially the kilfi (Indian style ice-cream). Anjum Anand is in London, so all the ingredients can be found in the west if you only take the time to look for them. So far, I've made the Himalayan Lamb and Yoghurt Curry (page 50)and today made the North Indian Lamb Curry (page 54). Both times I used mutton on the bone as lamb is hard to come by in India! Both were outstanding curries, but the North Indian recipe (from Punjab) turned out so well, I was compelled to write a review of the book. The paneer recipe is so simple that once I get myself a cheese cloth, I'll be making my own cheese from now on. Milk + lemon juice or yoghurt? How easy is that? This is an outstanding book and the recipes are laid out in a simple, novice friendly way. There are gorgeous pictures of almost every recipe and there are a few glossaries to help those unfamiliar with Indian spices or terminology. I highly suggest making your garlic/ginger paste from scratch and not try to find any store bought. It makes all the difference!